An Arizona physician was sentenced to two years in prison for his role in a $3.7 million healthcare fraud scheme.
Linh Cao Nguyen, MD, 51, of Peoria, pleaded guilty to a healthcare fraud charge in March, according to an Oct. 24 Justice Department news release. Dr. Nguyen knowingly submitted thousands of false claims to payers, including Medicare, Blue Cross Blue Shield and UnitedHealthcare. He also falsified patient records to conceal the scheme.
The fraudulent claims listed a physician as the treating provider when another provider, such as a nurse practitioner, independently performed the service. By billing for services as if they were physician-provided, he inflated the payments his company received.
Payers lost $3.7 million due to the scheme. Dr. Nguyen was ordered to pay $1.1 million in restitution to private insurance companies and more than $2.5 million to the government in a separate civil agreement.